Without the support of his boss, Atiku announced his presidential run on November 25, 2006 on the platform of the Action Congress (AC). Obasanjo made sure there was no space under the PDP umbrella for Atiku.

Atiku lost that presidential election to Umaru Yar’adua. He polled a distant third behind Muhammadu Buhari who ran on the platform of the ANPP.

2006 wasn’t Atiku’s first Presidential run, however.

In 1992, the elder Yar’adua had propped Atiku for the SDP Presidential primary. Atiku lost the SDP ticket to MKO Abiola and abandoned his Presidential ambition on the floor of the convention.

Atiku retreated behind the curtains, but he has been doing enough to suggest he’ll be back when another presidential contest comes around in 2019.

Atiku has set up his stall perfectly on social media, he’s taken to philanthropy, he’s become friends with the millennials, he lets you know when he’s watching Arsenal play, he tweets like the rest of us, his PR handlers have been working overtime and he’s began to grant more and more interviews to the mainstream media.

Plus, he boasts very deep pockets.

For Atiku, the mantra is-- become Nigeria’s President or die tryin’.

Atiku belongs to the school of thought that says, it doesn't matter how many times a man falls, what counts is how many times he's able to get back up.